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Queasy Feeling - April 2017 - Subscribe to Outpatient Surgery Magazine

Outpatient Surgery Magazine, providing current information on Surgical Services, Surgical Facility Administration, Outpatient Surgery News and Trends, OR Excellence and more.

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labels remains legible even after being hit with fluids that often splash onto the sterile field. The same can't be said for handwritten labels, which can smear when wet, but which are still needed to identify sel- dom-used agents. When filling out handwritten labels, be sure to note the medication's name, strength and dose. Color-coded labels provide staff with a quick and easy way to identi- fy the contents of a syringe or container, but that benefit is also a potential drawback. We've eliminated the use of color-coded labels, because we found that staff members were relying on the color of labels when retrieving needed medications instead of rereading and rechecking the information on conventional labels. 6. Encourage sharing. Reporting adverse events is an effective way to prevent similar mistakes from occurring. Make sure staff members understand that their reporting of errors and near misses will not be met with punishment (unless, of course, their actions were a careless and intentional disregard for patient safety). The tech who accidentally filled the syringe with local anesthetic felt comfortable speaking up, which can be a difficult thing to do, because she knew we'd support her willingness to own the error. She showed courage in putting patient safety above her own pride, but she also knew our response would be a non-punitive investigation to protect future patients from potential harm. It's also a good idea to share the lessons learned from near misses and mistakes at daily morning huddles. There's no better way to raise awareness than to have staff members share their insights from a real- life event — when the details are still fresh in their minds. OSM A P R I L 2 0 1 7 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 3 3 Ms. Dutton (catherine.dutton @baystatehealth.org) is the clinical nurse educator of perioperative services and Ms. Betti (diane.betti@baystate- health.org) is the director of inpatient surgery, pre-op, PACU and sterile processing at Baystate Health in Springfield, Mass.

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